Rescaling the Great North Wall
Today, the scaffolding tower was moved to the north side so the re-pointing of the chimney could begin. This is a line item on the 2017 Heritage Trust grant.
Due to a faulty built-in gutter, for decades water has been pouring down over the bricks and leaching out the mortar.
You can see evidence of the overspill from the gutter. This is bad.
The north chimney has settled 2-1/2-inches. It has dragged the house down with it, AND the gutter. Meaning, that the gutter no longer moves water in a channel but simply lets the water spill over its edge and down the brick.
After the re-pointing is done, I will attend to the gutter.
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May the repointing of the brick go smoothly.
The 1894 build date seems to require lime mortar for repair, and the Cross House’s chimney mortar appears tinted. Inquiring minds look forward to how learning how you will source and tint the re-pointing mortar! https://usheritage.com/dawes-house-evanston-history-center-evanston-il/ ??
Yes, it’s certainly high-lime mortar, far softer and more permeable than modern high-portland cement (e.g. Type S) mortar. I’m sure Ross is well aware of the dangers in using the wrong materials, as mortar is one case where using stronger material is ALWAYS worse! I cringe every time I see historic bricks damaged by misguided repointing with modern mortar.
BTW, I used US Heritage (which is conveniently just an hour drive from my house) to custom-match and blend colored mortar for repointing on our circa 1926 brick home. It cost about $500, but they did chemical lab analysis to determine the correct lime/cement/sand proportions, and color pigments, and then uses the recipe to custom-blend replacement mortar as needed. They even keep a file based on the address, so a future owner can order up the same mortar without needing to have a new lab analysis done. It seems pricey up front, but well worth it for knowing you get the correct strength mortar for you bricks, and their color match was incredibly accurate. They were even great to work with as a homeowner, and answered questions I had over the phone. I highly recommend them.
Is there any chance you will raise the chimney back to level?
That would cost about $40K
Not gonna happen!
Yes, and unless done very slowly, liable to cause more damage than it would correct. Buildings settle, and in many cases, it’s best to work around the problem rather than try to reverse it.
May tuck and point go well.
Will you have anymore joists to shore up this part of the house or will the guttering fix correct?
Well…crap-o. To the gutter and the sinking chimney.
Crap-o, indeed, Linda!
Wow, this seems like a job I certainly would not want to tackle. Best of luck with this. I hope you can at least get the gutter situation resolved.
Be safe up there Ross, hope all goes well.